Improvement in carpet-sweepers



ZSheet s-Sheet 1.

A. c. BRECKENRIDGE. CARPET SWEEPER P aten'ted Feb. 15, 1876.

ZShetsQ-Sheet 2. .A..'C. BRECKENRIDGE.

' CARPET-SWEEPERQ v 1 v NO-173,58Z. Patented Feb.15,1 8'76.

N-PETERS. PNOTO-LITHOGRAPHIER, WASHINGTON 6 C ALLENDER REoxnriRIDeE, OF.wEsr MERIDEN, CONNECTICUT.

IMPROVEMENT m CARPE'T-SWEEPERS'.

I specificationyforming part of Letters Patent No. 173,582, datedFebruary 15, 1876; application filed January 3, 1876.

To all whom it may concern:

vented certain new and useful Improvements in Carpet-Sweepers;- and dohereby declare specification, in whichthat the following is afull,clear, and exact de-; scription thereof, reference being had to the vaccompanyi n g drawings, makingapart of this proved carpet-sweepingmachine, ready for;

otf. Fig. 2'is a longitudinal central section on a line as m, of Fi 1. PFi 3 is a side elevation, showing the device for adjusting the dust boxor pan and brush vertically, the arran gement of the parts in thegrooved pulleys, and the cross-belt in position; and Fig. 4 is a sectionof one of the grooved pulleys, rollers, and shaft, upon the line y y ofFig. 3.

Letters of like name and kind refer to like parts in each of thetigures.

The design of my invention is to increase the efficiency ofcarpet-sweepin g machines, by

adapting them to any kind of a carpet; and it consists, principally, inthe means employed for securing the vertical adjustment of the dustboxand brush with relation'to the surface to be operated upon,substantiallyas and for the purpose hereinafter specified. It con-.sists, further, in the means employed for ro- V tating the brush in onedirection, whether the upon the rear side of the same is provided adoor, A, that is secured upon itsnpper side to said box A by means oftwo or more hinges,

. a a, and at its lower side is fastened, when closed,'to said box bymeans of a book, a. The object of this door is to provide means foremptying dust from the box or pan, which is accomplished by opening thedoor, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 2. A horizontal use, exceptthat the handle is shown brokeni shaft, B, is firmly fastened upon andsecured to the door A, by means of two lugs, B B,

which latter serve as journal-boxes for said shaft B, and by means ofwhich the same is enabled to be revolved. Two rollers, G O, are firmlyfastened to and upon the shaft B, near each end of the same,theperipheries of which are covered'with corrugated india-rubber, put on inthe form of a tire, the office of which latt'er is to prevent saidrollers from slipping Figure 1 is a perspective view of my im-.

when the machine is being moved upon acarpet. A brush, D, constructed ofany suitable material, is formed upon a horizontal shaft, and

placed within the dust box or pan A, near the tbrward side'of the sameand parallel to or with the rollershaft B. The ends of this shaftextendoutward sufficiently far to enable journals to be formed upon said shaftoutside of the dust box or pan A, and upon the outer end of saidjournals are fastened and secured two small grooved pulleys, D D.Journaled loosely upon each end of the shaft B, outside of the roller 0,is a grooved pulley, C, which is provided upon its inner face with anannular groove or recess, cfand has its-hub extended inward upon saidshaft, so as to afford a firm bearing. Upon the outer end of the roller0 is pivoted a pawl, c, which has, preferably, a rubber block, 0,attached to its for-' ward face, and extending outward, so as to formthe engaging-end of said pawl. The pawl c has such width as to cause itto loose" ly fill the space between the end of the roller (3 and theinner side of the recess 0, and has a length greater than the distanceradially between its pivotal bearing and the periphery of said recess,so that when turned forward to its furthermost limit, the outer end ofsaid pawl will bear against said periphery at a point slightly in rearof aline passing radially through its saidpivotal bearing, in whichposition it is held by a spring, 0, that is attached at one end t-o'orupon the end of said roller, and at its opposite end bears against therear side of said pawl.

As thus arranged, it will be seen that the rotation of the roller in thedirection'indicated by the arrows of Fig. 3 will cause the pawl toengage with and rotate the pulley in the same direction, while, bymoving said roller in an opposite direction, said pawl will pass overthe periphery of the recess of said pulley without engagement, andbyproperly arranging both pulleys, one will be rotated when the rollersand their shaft turn in a forward direction and the opposite pulley willbe rotated by the opposite motion of said shaft.

The motions described are utilized by connecting the pulleys O and Dupon one side of the machine by means of an open belt, G, and connectingsaid pulleys upon the opposite side by acrosscd belt, G, by which meanseach of said pulleys will alternately drive the brush and be driven byit, as the machine is moved in opposite directions over the floor, theresult being that said brushis always rotated'in the same direction.

The journal-boxes dd are rendered adj ustable-vertically by beingpivoted at their rear ends to the dust box or pan A, and by a circulargroove or slot and thumb-screw at their forward end, as shown in Figs. 1and 3. In order to enable all kinds of carpets to be swept with equalfacility, it has been found necessary to provide means whereby the dustbox or pan A and brush D can be vertically adjusted to suit the work tobe done, and this is accomplished as follows:

- A small horizontal shaft, E, is placed in the,

upper and forwardend of the dust-box or pan A, and the ends of theformer are permitted I to project a short distance through the ends ofthe latter, and are loosely fitted in the same. Two small levers, E E,are fastened upon and secured to the ends of the shaft E, and by meansof a small pin or stud, e, that is fastened to said lever upon therighthand side, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the operator is enabled toturn the shaft E. The adjusting-shoes F F are pivoted at their rear endsand upon their sides to the dust box or pan A, and extend from the frontof said dust box or pan to the rear of the same. The front and rear endsof said adjusting-shoes are curved upward in such a manner as tofacilitate their sliding easily upon a carpet in either a forward orbackward direction, and at their forward ends and upon their sides areprovided slots and thumb-screws for the purposes of maintain-- ing themin any desired positions. The lower ends of the connections F F areattached to the upper and forward ends of the adjustingshoes F F, bymeans of small pins, that are fitted loosely, and thus form aworking-joint, and the upper ends of said connections are attached tothe small levers E E in a manner similar to that of the lower ends,except that the pins are placed near the outer edge of the hub of saidsmall levers, and thus form partial eccentrics, by means of whichcombination the dust box or pan A and brush D are enabled to bevertically adjusted. Metallic pins f f are driven into the wood, asshown in Fig. 3, to mark degreesby means of which the operator is guidedin adjusting thedust box or pan and brush, according to the work to bedone. It will be seen that as the shoes have bearing upon the flooralong their entire 'dust box or pan (a section of which is shown in Fig.2) and extends transversely across said box from end to end, the objectof which, in connection with the brush D, is to gather and retain thedust as it is forced into the box. A handle or tongue, H, by which themachine is drawnor propelled, is fastened loosely to the shaft B, asshown in Figs. 1 and 2, and as thus constructed, the machine iscomplete.

Its operation is as follows: If a two or three ply or a Brussels carpetis to be swept, the dustboxAand'brush D are lowered to suit the work;and if a tapestry or other similar carpet is to be swept, the dust-boxand brush are raised, and, whether the machine is pushed or pulled, theresult is the same, so far as the revolving brush is concerned, as itwill always rotate in a forward direction. It is believed that thelast-mentioned arrangement, together with the means provided forvertical adjustment,

gives this machine decided advantages that are not possessed by others,as the operator is enabled by its use to Sweep any kind of carpet(whether skilled in the use of this class of machines or not) in themost thorough manner, and without injury'to the same.

Having thus-fully set forth the nature and merits of my invention, whatI claim as new 1s .1. In a carpet-sweeping machine, a shoe or bearing,F, placed beneath each side of the box or frame A, and combined with andmade vertically adj ustable with relation to saidframe, substantially asand for the purpose specified.

2. In combination with the shoes F and F, pivoted at their rear ends toor upon the box A, the shaft E, the levers E and E, and the bars F andF, pivoted eccentrically upon said levers and connected with the forwardends of said shoes, substantially as and for the purpose shown.

3. In combination with the pulleys Dand D of the brush D, the shaft B,rollers U and O, pulleys O and 0, provided each with an annular recess,0, and journaled upon said shaft, the pawls c c 0", attached to the endof said roller 0, and the open and crossed belts G and G, respectively,substantially as and for the purpose shown and described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this13th day of December, 1875.

ALLENDER G. BRECKENRIDGE.

. Witnesses:

LEWIS BIRDSEY GEO. R. CURTIS.

